CONCEPT NOTE
3rd Youth Forum on SDG Implementation
11 & 21 November 2019
Incheon, Republic of Korea
1. Rationale
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development encourages the Member States to develop ambitious
responses to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Countries are encouraged to integrate the
SDGs into their national development strategies and plans while taking into account their respective
levels of development and capacities. The United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/RES/69/327
further emphasizes the growing need to strengthen public institutions and public services in support of
sustainable development.1 The success of the SDGs depends on the coordination of implementation
efforts through good public governance. Public governance can be defined as the exercise of economic,
political and administrative authority to manage a country’s affairs at all levels.2 More governments
seek to engage more of their stakeholders in decision making, moving from governing for people to
governing with people 3. Policies that employ collaborative efforts and early engagement with the public
have shown higher levels of impact and integration.4
The overarching principle for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is leaving no one behind,
engaging with the vulnerable and marginalized groups. Youth have traditionally been excluded from
policy-making platforms and not adequately represented by their governments. The United Nations has
long recognized that the imagination, ideals and energy of young people are vital for the continuing
development of the societies in which they live.5
Young people can be a force for development as well as drivers of innovation and progress at the local,
national and global levels. They tend to be among the first to embrace new ideas and innovation and
frequently recognize the global and local dynamics of development. Their roles in ensuring
inclusiveness and equality in societies is central to the overall efforts of the global community6.
1 United Nations General Assembly Resolution, A/RES/69/327 https://undocs.org/en/A/RES/69/327
2 United Nations, World Public Sector Report 2015 http://workspace.unpan.org/sites/Internet/Documents/UNPAN95253.pdf
3 United Nations, Compendium of Innovative Practices in Public Governance and Administration for Sustainable Development,
https://publicadministration.un.org/publications/content/PDFs/Compendium%20Public%20Governance%20and%20Administr
ation%20for%20Sustainable%20Development.pdf
4 United nations, STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND POLICY INTEGRATION IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT GOALS, http://workspace.unpan.org/sites/Internet/Documents/UNPAN98147.pdf
5 United Nations, World Population Prospects 2017, https://population.un.org/wpp/Download/Standard/Population/
6 Ibid.
Failure to foster youth development in an inclusive manner or fulfill young people’s rights can lead to
inequalities with long-term economic and social consequences. For instance, it is recognized that the
exclusion of young people from educational and employment opportunities negatively impacts their
well-being and therefore damages social cohesion and stability.7
Critical to the success of the 2030 Agenda are the role of young people in engaging with local and
national government in delivering on policies and programmes on the ground; the role of public-private
partnerships in driving the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, including financing and harnessing
technology for data collection and utilization; and the role of youth participation in informing equitable
and diverse policy design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.8
The United Nations Project Office on Governance (UNPOG), part of the Division for Public Institutions
and Digital Government (DPIDG) of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
(UN DESA), hosted the speech contests under the theme of ‘Youth engagement in SDG implementation’
in 2017 and 2018, in collaboration with the Ministry of Interior and Safety, the Ministry of Environment,
and the Incheon Metropolitan City Government.
This year, UNPOG’s youth programme has been further developed. Accordingly, in July 2019, UNPOG,
the United Nations Office for Sustainable Development (UNOSD) and K-ECO co-organized the SDGs
Youth Summer Camp in Incheon and discussed the SDGs and the role of the youth in achieving the
goals.
To engage the young people in policy dialogue, the “3rd Youth Forum on SDG implementation” will
take place in Incheon on 11 and 21 November 2019. The youth session on 21 November 2019 will be
organized as a special event in parallel with the UN DESA Symposium which will be attended by the
Under-Secretary-General of UN DESA, ministers, and senior decision-makers from Asia and the
Pacific. Consequently, the youth forum will be a platform to enable the youth to raise their voices and
exchanges ideas to accelerate SDG implementation whereby focusing on the roles of public governance.
2. Objectives
The objectives of the Youth Forum will include but are not limited to:
Enhancing awareness and knowledge of the youth on the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs.
Incubating new ideas on the roles of youth and governments in implementing the SDGs.
Fostering youth engagement in SDG implementation
Expanding UNPOG’s contribution and partnerships for promoting the SDGs.
3. Eligibility for Application
Young individuals born between 1993 and 2003, residing in the Republic of Korea are eligible to apply
regardless of nationality and educational background.
7 Ibid
8 United Nations, World Youth Report 2018, https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/wp-
content/uploads/sites/21/2018/12/WorldYouthReport-2030Agenda.pdf
4. Forum Process
① Preliminary Round
- Submit the following documents to [email protected] by 18 October 2019.
▪ Application with a short essay (maximum 3 pages)
▪ Power Point Presentation (maximum 5 slides, saved as PDF and PPT both)
▪ Consent to use personal information
- Successful applicants will be notified on 25 October 2019 individually.
Theme:
Leveraging Public Governance and Engaging All Stakeholders to Accelerate
the Achievement of the SDGs – How Can the Youth Contribute?
Essay Guiding Question
What policy/government program would you like to propose?
▪ What challenges within public governance will need to be addressed to
implement the proposal successfully?
▪ How will the youth and other marginalized groups be engaged?
▪ What partnerships would be helpful in continuous success? (NGOs,
NPOs, CSOs, local/national government, private sector, etc)
*You may refer to specific SDG goals and targets that will be directly addressed.
② Group Discussions and Presentations
- Date and venue: 11 November 2019, Songdo, Incheon
- Evaluation: Group discussions and individual presentations will be evaluated.
Time Agenda
11:00-11:20 Orientation
11:20-12:00 Lecture
12:00-13:00 Lunch
13:00-14:00 Group Discussions
14:00-14:30 Break
14:30-18:00 Individual Presentations (10 minutes per person)
③ Participation in the Youth session during the UN DESA Symposium
- Date and venue: 21 November 2019, Songdo, Incheon
- Selected youth forum participants will perform the roles of keynote speakers,
presenters, and panelists in the youth forum which will be organized as a special event
of the UN DESA Symposium.
Time Agenda
09:00-12:00 Attend the UN DESA Symposium
12:00-13:30 Individual Lunch
13:30-17:00 Youth Session & Awards Ceremony
5. Awards
Ministerial awards by the Minister of the Interior and Safety, Republic of Korea
Ministerial awards by the Minister of Environment, Republic of Korea
Mayoral awards by the Mayor of Incheon Metropolitan City, Republic of Korea
6. Benefits
The awardees and selected participants of the youth session on 21 November 2019 will be invited to
the 2020 United Nations Public Service Forum (UNPSF) and the United Nations Public Service Awards
(UNPSA) in June 2020 in Busan, Republic of Korea. Domestic transportation, accommodation and
meals in Busan will be covered.
UNPSF
The 2020 UNPSF will be organized by UN DESA and the Government of the
Republic of Korea. The forum will organize parallel workshops and side events,
inviting ministers and senior decision makers to reflect on how to advance progress
in realizing the SDGs.
UNPSA
UNPSA promotes and rewards innovation and excellence in public services in
support of the realization of the SDGs and the principle of leaving no one behind. It
rewards the creative achievements and contributions of public service institutions
that lead to a more effective and responsive public administration in countries
worldwide. Through an annual competition, UNPSA promotes the role,
professionalism and visibility of public service for the realization of the 2030 Agenda.
For more information https://publicadministration.un.org/en/unpsa
7. Organizers
UNPOG/DPIDG/UN DESA
Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Republic of Korea
8. Sponsors
Ministry of Environment, Republic of Korea
Incheon Metropolitan City, Republic of Korea
9. Contact information
Ms. Ewijeong Jeong ([email protected] / 070-4230-7337)
10. References
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/
United Nations General Assembly Resolution, A/RES/70/1
https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/generalassembly/docs/globalcompact/A_RES_7
0_1_E.pdf
United Nations, Youth Programme on Youth
https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/
United Nations, 2018 World Youth Report
https://www.un.org/development/desa/youth/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2018/12/WorldYouthReport-
2030Agenda.pdf
United Nations, SDG Accelerator and Bottleneck Assessment,
https://www.undp.org/content/dam/undp/library/SDGs/English/SDG_Accelerator_and_Bottleneck_Assessment
_Tool.pdf
United Nations Sustainable Development Group
https://undg.org/2030-agenda/sdg-acceleration-toolkit/
